The Competition

On each model of competition the Rover series has an answer in the form of economicRover 2000 Rover 2300S, 2600S and the sportier the most exclusive of its kind in theRover 3500 Vanden Plas.

The Volvo

Launched in 1974 as model 75 the Volvo 240/260 series was an important stepforward in the field of safety, environment and driving pleasure for VolvoPersonvagnar. Also as an engine for the organisational changes within the companywas the series essential for the manufacturer from 1988.Volvo PV marked the engines of the 200 Series with a B for the Swedish word Bensin,which is petrol, or a D for the name Diesel. Furthermore, the manufacturer indicatedthe volume of the engine with digits. Thus: 21 meant, for example, 2.1 litres. Theletters after the volume pointed out the fitting of a carburettor, a carburettor withturbo, injection, injection with a catalytic converter, injection with a turbo orinjection with a turbo and a catalytic converter:·B21A: petrol, 2,1 litre, carburettor ·B21AT: petrol, 2,1 litre, carburettor and retrofitted turbo ·B21E: petrol, 2,1 litre, injection ·B21F: petrol, 2,1 litre, injection and catalytic converter ·B21ET: petrol, 2,1 litre, injection and turbo ·B21FT: petrol, 2,1 litre, injection, turbo and catalytic converter

Ford Granada

The European Ford Granada is a large executive car that was manufactured by FordEurope from 1972 untill 1994. The March 1972-released Granada succeeded theBritish Ford Zephyr, and the German P7-series as Ford's European executive caroffering. At first, lower models in the range were called the Ford Consul. This mayhave been because of a lawsuit by Granada Group a major British conglomerate ofthe time; however, their application for an injunction failed at appeal and they couldnot prevent Ford registering the name Granada as a trademark thus from 1975 onthey were all called Granadas. The car soon became popular for taxi, fleet, andpolice use. It was also converted into limousine and hearse versions by the Britishcompanies Coleman Milne and Woodall Nicholson. Traditional four-door limousineswere offered (both long and short versions) alongside an unusual four-door "coupélimousine" (only 12 built), as well as hearses in either two- or four-doorconfigurations.Mechanically, the European Granada conformed to Ford convention, the initial rangeusing the Ford Essex V4 unit in 2.0 L displacement, and the "Essex" V6 engine in 2.5and 3.0 L capacities. German models employed a Ford Taunus V4 engine in 1.7 Ldisplacement, or the 3.0L Essex V6, or, more commonly the "Cologne" V6 in 2.0, 2.3 or2.6 L capacities. The V4 was later replaced by the Pinto unit. The car generallyfollowed mechanical layout of its predecessors Ford Zephyr/Zodiac, using a coil-spring independent rear end, although front MacPherson struts were replaced bydouble wishbones, introduced 18 months earlier in smaller TC Cortina and Taunus.However, the Granada – like Ford 17M/20M/26M – featured drum brakes at rear, asopposed to the Ford Zephyr/Zodiac rear disc brakes.

Renault 15 and Renault 17.

At the 1974 Paris Motor Show, the Renault 17TS was renamed the "17 Gordini". Thisnew name was an attempt to fill the gap left by the recently discontinued Renault 12Gordini, nothing was changed beyond the badging.There was a minor facelift during March 1976, most noticeable on the grille of the 15,where the chrome edge surround was replaced with a body-coloured one: theheadlights were enlarged and brought forward to a position approximately flush withthe surround. The grille of the 17 also lost its chrome surround, although on both carsthe partially chrome front bumper now curved up at the edges to roughly half-way upthe height of the grille. The R15 and R17 remained in production until summer 1979when they were both replaced by the Renault Fuego.Britain's Autocar magazine tested a 1,289 cc Renault 15 TL in November 1972, shortlyafter the model's UK debut. The top speed of 94 mph (151 km/h) and the 0-60 mph(97 km/h) time of 13.6 seconds put the car near the bottom of the list of competitorvehicles selected for comparison, but overall fuel consumption for the test was classleading at 31.8 mpg-imp (8.9 L/100 km; 26.5 mpg-US). The manufacturers'recommended retail price of £1,370 was slightly lower than the UK sticker price on acomparable Vauxhall Firenza Sport and Fiat 128 Coupe 1300: Ford's Capri 1300L at£1,123 massively undercut comparable cars in the UK at the time. The test concludedby pointing out that for buyers needing more power, more powerful Renault 15 and 17variants were available, and that power apart, the 15 TL provided "a combination ofattractive styling and careful development, excellent comfort and a high level ofequipment and safety

Citroen CX

The Citroën CX is an executive car produced by the French automaker Citroën from1974 to 1991. Citroën sold nearly 1.2 million CXs during its 16 years of production.The CX was voted European Car of the Year in 1975. The name CX is the Frenchequivalent abbreviation of Cd for drag coefficient in English, drawing attention to thecar's aerodynamic styling, which was uncommon in 1974.It is considered by some enthusiasts as the last "real Citroën" before Peugeot tookcontrol of the company in 1976.Available models were a four-door fastback, a station wagon (break, or estate car),and a long-wheelbase model built on the break chassis. The CX employed Citroën'sunique hydropneumatic self-leveling suspension system.

The Competition

On each model of competition the Rover series has an answer in the formof economic Rover 2000 Rover 2300S, 2600S and the sportier the mostexclusive of its kind in the Rover 3500 Vanden Plas.

The Volvo

Launched in 1974 as model 75 the Volvo 240/260 series was an importantstep forward in the field of safety, environment and driving pleasure forVolvo Personvagnar. Also as an engine for the organisational changeswithin the company was the series essential for the manufacturer from1988.Volvo PV marked the engines of the 200 Series with a B for the Swedishword Bensin, which is petrol, or a D for the name Diesel. Furthermore, themanufacturer indicated the volume of the engine with digits. Thus: 21meant, for example, 2.1 litres. The letters after the volume pointed outthe fitting of a carburettor, a carburettor with turbo, injection, injectionwith a catalytic converter, injection with a turbo or injection with a turboand a catalytic converter:·B21A: petrol, 2,1 litre, carburettor ·B21AT: petrol, 2,1 litre, carburettor and retrofitted turbo ·B21E: petrol, 2,1 litre, injection ·B21F: petrol, 2,1 litre, injection and catalytic converter ·B21ET: petrol, 2,1 litre, injection and turbo ·B21FT: petrol, 2,1 litre, injection, turbo and catalyticconverter

Ford Granada

The European Ford Granada is a large executive car that wasmanufactured by Ford Europe from 1972 untill 1994. The March 1972-released Granada succeeded the British Ford Zephyr, and the German P7-series as Ford's European executive car offering. At first, lower models inthe range were called the Ford Consul. This may have been because of alawsuit by Granada Group a major British conglomerate of the time;however, their application for an injunction failed at appeal and theycould not prevent Ford registering the name Granada as a trademark thusfrom 1975 on they were all called Granadas. The car soon became popularfor taxi, fleet, and police use. It was also converted into limousine andhearse versions by the British companies Coleman Milne and WoodallNicholson. Traditional four-door limousines were offered (both long andshort versions) alongside an unusual four-door "coupé limousine" (only 12built), as well as hearses in either two- or four-door configurations.Mechanically, the European Granada conformed to Ford convention, theinitial range using the Ford Essex V4 unit in 2.0 L displacement, and the"Essex" V6 engine in 2.5 and 3.0 L capacities. German models employed aFord Taunus V4 engine in 1.7 L displacement, or the 3.0L Essex V6, or,more commonly the "Cologne" V6 in 2.0, 2.3 or 2.6 L capacities. The V4was later replaced by the Pinto unit. The car generally followedmechanical layout of its predecessors Ford Zephyr/Zodiac, using a coil-spring independent rear end, although front MacPherson struts werereplaced by double wishbones, introduced 18 months earlier in smaller TCCortina and Taunus. However, the Granada – like Ford 17M/20M/26M –featured drum brakes at rear, as opposed to the Ford Zephyr/Zodiac reardisc brakes.

Renault 15 and Renault 17.

At the 1974 Paris Motor Show, the Renault 17TS was renamed the "17Gordini". This new name was an attempt to fill the gap left by therecently discontinued Renault 12 Gordini, nothing was changed beyond thebadging.There was a minor facelift during March 1976, most noticeable on thegrille of the 15, where the chrome edge surround was replaced with abody-coloured one: the headlights were enlarged and brought forward toa position approximately flush with the surround. The grille of the 17 alsolost its chrome surround, although on both cars the partially chrome frontbumper now curved up at the edges to roughly half-way up the height ofthe grille. The R15 and R17 remained in production until summer 1979when they were both replaced by the Renault Fuego.Britain's Autocar magazine tested a 1,289 cc Renault 15 TL in November1972, shortly after the model's UK debut. The top speed of 94 mph (151km/h) and the 0-60 mph (97 km/h) time of 13.6 seconds put the car nearthe bottom of the list of competitor vehicles selected for comparison, butoverall fuel consumption for the test was class leading at 31.8 mpg-imp(8.9 L/100 km; 26.5 mpg-US). The manufacturers' recommended retailprice of £1,370 was slightly lower than the UK sticker price on acomparable Vauxhall Firenza Sport and Fiat 128 Coupe 1300: Ford's Capri1300L at £1,123 massively undercut comparable cars in the UK at thetime. The test concluded by pointing out that for buyers needing morepower, more powerful Renault 15 and 17 variants were available, and thatpower apart, the 15 TL provided "a combination of attractive styling andcareful development, excellent comfort and a high level of equipment andsafety

Citroen CX

The Citroën CX is an executive car produced by the French automakerCitroën from 1974 to 1991. Citroën sold nearly 1.2 million CXs during its16 years of production. The CX was voted European Car of the Year in1975. The name CX is the French equivalent abbreviation of Cd for dragcoefficient in English, drawing attention to the car's aerodynamic styling,which was uncommon in 1974.It is considered by some enthusiasts as the last "real Citroën" beforePeugeot took control of the company in 1976.Available models were a four-door fastback, a station wagon (break, orestate car), and a long-wheelbase model built on the break chassis. TheCX employed Citroën's unique hydropneumatic self-leveling suspensionsystem.